


This City Sinks: Feature Presentation

by loserskaspbrak



Series: This City Sinks: Derry, ME [S04EP25] [3]
Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti)
Genre: F/M, M/M, this is for my sm au on twitter, this will be a very weird read without the context of the posts on ghastlytrvl on twitter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-24
Updated: 2020-05-15
Packaged: 2021-02-27 19:22:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,509
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22880980
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loserskaspbrak/pseuds/loserskaspbrak
Summary: Richie Tozier is the host of the popular ghost hunting television show, Ghastly. Fans and critics of the show argue back and forth over whether what is filmed is real or not. Truly, how are the viewers to know what happened to Richie and his friends in the summer of 1989?That isn’t to say the show isn’t highly exaggerated. It is. Richie and his team put on a fantastic performance each episode, which he believes should earn him an Emmy at the very least.To Richie, it’s all fun and games as long as he can avoid two things.1. Whatever the hell was in the Well House in Derry, Maine on June 3rd, 1989 and 2. The fact that he’s in love with his best friend, Eddie Kaspbrak.Too bad for Richie Tozier, huh?-Richie and Eddie are on their way back to Derry, Maine. It's early October and there are still plenty of secrets to be kept. However, who has ever enjoyed a bad road trip? Take a break and enjoy the open road. We're fine.For now.-Richie Tozier is back in Derry, Maine and already things are a little strange.-The Prologue: What Happened in the Summer of '89, Anyway?Intermission: On the RoadFeature Presentation: Queue the 80s Fight Song Playlist
Relationships: Ben Hanscom/Beverly Marsh, Bill Denbrough/Mike Hanlon, Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Series: This City Sinks: Derry, ME [S04EP25] [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1629055
Kudos: 10





	1. ONE

**Author's Note:**

> @Ghastlytrvl invites you to join Richie Tozier and friends on twitter.

All Richie wanted to do was get away from his friends and he had only just arrived. He didn’t know what the fuck had happened with his phone, but he had a feeling it had something to do with the polaroid he still kept in his wallet. 

The guilt had been eating at him from the moment Mike first messaged him and it only intensified the closer he had gotten to Derry. Sure, he was playing it off. He was a pro at acting like nothing bothered him, deflecting with crazy antics and anecdotes, but now that he was in Derry? It was bound to get harder. 

Still, a part of him settled when he saw Mike and Bill. He missed his friends more than anything. Richie just hated having this secret. If he knew that everything would be okay, he would have told them by now. He just didn’t know that it would be a catalyst for something worse. So a secret it would stay. 

“Richie!” Mike smiled and pulled him in for a hug. “It’s been a while.”

Richie hugged him back tight before letting go and moving on to Bill. “I know, I missed you all, too. You really need to make it out of the Derry bubble. Look at Bill, it’s stunted his growth.”

“Ha ha asshole,” Bill muttered, but hugged him nonetheless. Richie pulled back and smiled at the two. 

“Really, Derry is a hell hole. I can’t imagine why you three decided to stay.” 

Stan sighed as he walked into the living room with coffee mugs. “I wish we could tell you, but it just felt right? At least for me. It felt like the right thing to do.” 

Richie took one from him as Mike grabbed two for him and Bill. Stan sat down on his armchair. Mike and Bill sat on the love seat across from him. Richie stayed standing up where he had a good view of the stairs, where Eddie could come walking down at any second. 

“Derry is fine. Stick with the devil you know and what not,” Mike said. “Besides, the library pays well enough now and Bill likes writing here.”

Bill frowned and Richie was about to ask about it when Eddie came down, “Hey, are you ready t- oh, hey guys!” 

“I guess you didn’t get my text, Eds,” Richie said. 

“Hey, Eddie!” Mike said, about to get up from his seat. 

“Hey Mike, Bill. Please don’t get up, we can have our hugs over drinks and dinner later? I just remembered I didn’t bring any baby aspirin and Tums…” Eddie said and pulled at Richie’s wrist. “We should go by the store.”

“Oh, are you sure? I might have some of that stuff around here,” Stan said and set his mug down on a coaster. 

“I’m sure,” Eddie waved his free hand. “Does anyone need anything while we’re out? For dinner?”

“Are you okay?” Bill asked. 

Eddie’s hand relaxed around Richie’s wrist. “Yeah. Yes, I’m okay.”

“You know how Eds gets when his plans fall through. He thought he packed everything perfectly,” Richie said, knowing that Eddie needed that excuse. “We’ll be back soon… We can get stuff for spaghetti. Sounds good?”

“Yeah, I guess that’s fine…” Stan frowned. 

“We’ll see you soon, then,” Mike said. 

Eddie didn’t wait to pull Richie out the front door. When the door shut, Eddie relaxed. 

“Eds, cut the shit. Are you okay?” Richie asked. 

“N-no. Yes. I don’t fucking know. Can we just go?” Eddie asked and walked down the front steps. He unlocked the car and hopped in the driver seat. Richie watched him for a split second longer before he followed him down. 

Once they were both in the car, Eddie put his head on the steering wheel. “I saw something. I might be overthinking it, maybe. I don’t know. I don’t think I am.”

“What?” Richie clutched the coffee mug that he had somehow forgotten about up until now. His phone was burning a hole in his pocket and Richie wanted nothing more than to tell Eddie about what had happened. Except he couldn’t. He couldn’t risk it. 

“When I was getting dressed, right after you messaged me,” Eddie paused and looked at Stan’s house through his windshield. He took a breath before starting again. “I saw a black spot on the dresser mirror. I thought it was just a smudge at first and tried to clean it off, but it kept getting bigger.

“When I pulled my hand away, it had moved onto my hand. It was… fuck, it was like when we were younger. At the house on Neibolt…”

Richie opened his car door and tossed the liquid outside. He knew if he held it any longer, he would end up dropping the scolding hot liquid on himself or in the car. “Maybe you were just seeing things, Eds.”

“Are you fucking kidding me? You think I could make something like this up?” Eddie fumed. Richie closed the car door and turned to the driver’s side. 

“I didn’t say that, Eds,” Richie said. 

“Yeah, you did. You said I was seeing things.”

“Fuck, I didn’t mean to say that you were making it up. I just meant that… I don’t know, Eddie. I don’t want it to mean what I think it means.” Richie looked down. The guilt was eating at him. He hated lying. He knew exactly what it meant. The weird message from earlier only cementing what he already felt. 

“I think it’s starting again,” Eddie said. “I just don’t understand why. We beat the game. It should be over. Maybe it’s just Derry…”

“I don’t know, Eds.” 

“Do you think it was bad that I didn’t want to tell Stan what happened? I mean it was his house, maybe I should tell them. I don’t fucking know,” Eddie frowned then shook his head. “I should tell them.”

Richie thought back to the way Bill looked back in the house and what Mike had told him over messages before. He was sure that they were keeping things from them, too, but he couldn’t prove it. Not really. “I wouldn’t. We don’t know what it is yet and I don’t want to scare them. Bill said Mike got a bit over dramatic about it all. We can wait until Bev and Ben arrive and see if it’s just happening to us.”

“To us?” Eddie asked. “Did something happen to you, too?”

_ Fuck _ . 

“No, I meant to you. Nothing’s happened to me.” Richie said, ignoring the phone in his pocket.

“You would tell me, though, if something did happen? I don’t want to feel like I’m going crazy.”

Richie put down the mug he was still holding and reached to grab Eddie’s hand. He squeezed gently before letting go and resting his hand on his own thigh. “I promise.”

Eddie nodded and started the car. “Thank you. Now let’s get the fuck out of here and find you some junk food and spaghetti, apparently. Asshole.”

“I thought you needed baby aspirin?” Richie asked, a smile forming on his lips.

“That was a fucking excuse to leave, obviously. Do you think we’re assholes for leaving as soon as we got there? I didn’t even greet them…” 

“Fuck them, Eds. They’ll be fine, anyway.” Richie put on his seatbelt as Eddie pulled out of the driveway. “But to actually answer your question, obviously we’re assholes.”

Eddie huffed a little laugh. “Yeah, fuck you. Speak for yourself.”

Richie turned to look at Eddie as he focused on the road. This was going to be the hardest trip of his life in more ways than one. 


	2. TWO

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow @Ghastlytrvl for a good time! (;

They rode back to Stan’s house in silence. Richie felt that Eddie had a lot to say if his hands gripping the wheel tightly had anything to say about it. He himself, on the other hand, had absolutely nothing to say. 

He stared down at his phone where the messages from himself had disappeared like the ones from earlier today. Richie didn’t understand what the fuck he was supposed to do. Was he supposed to trust his phone self? Was it another fucking mind trick from the thing? How the fuck was he supposed to know? 

And whatever the fucking thing was, why the fuck was it communicating with him through his fucking phone? Like sure, he gets that it’s the 21st century or whatever, but that didn’t mean fucking demons needed to start learning how to text, too. 

Richie shoved his phone in his pocket and focused on the houses they passed on their way back to Stan’s house. Each house looked similar to the one that Richie grew up in, even though that house was on the other side of town. 

Eddie’s would have been around here, though. Maybe a street over, if they were on Marigold. 

It wasn’t long before Eddie pulled into Stan’s driveway. He turned off the car and turned his head to face Richie. “What do you think they’re going to tell us?”

“I don’t know, Eds,” Richie said. 

“Do you think they’ve seen stuff, too? I know Mike and Bill said they were probably overreacting, but what if they weren’t? What if it’s all happening again? I ca-

“Eddie, please stop. You’re working yourself up. We don’t know what they’re going to tell us. It would be nothing and they’re just going to tell us they were the ones that destroyed the house on Neibolt. We don’t fucking know.” Richie felt sick. 

Eddie looked away. “Fine. Let’s go find out, then.”

They got out of the car and walked back into the house. Stan, Bill, and Mike weren’t in the living room, though. Eddie and Richie looked at each other and frowned. “Stan?”

Eddie walked toward the stairs and called out for Bill and Mike. They each received silence in return. “Do you think they went to Bill and Mike’s?” 

“Why the fuck would they leave? Bill told you to come here, didn’t he?” Eddie asked and turned back to him. “What if this is another trick?”

“No, I don’t think it is,” Richie said. The message from Bill had been normal and though he didn’t know much about demons texting habits, all his other messages had been distorted. “We should just wait for them. Or we can call them.”

“How the fuck are you so calm about this? Our friends are being haunted, I hallucinated some shit, the house on Neibolt is gone, and now they’re missing after asking us to come back! That’s serious shit, Richie.”

Richie turned away and shrugged. “I think we need to be level headed about this.”

“Oh fuck you, if you had experienced the shit I did, you would be halfway back to New York.” Eddie walked away from the stairs and threw himself on one of the couches. “And since when have you been level headed?”

“I’m a grown up, Eds,” Richie said and pulled out his phone. No new messages, everything looked fine. 

He typed out a message to Stan and hit send, but the message only read that it was delivered. “I sent Stan a message. They’re probably performing an emergency exorcism on Bill or something.”

“Beep beep, asshole. That’s not even remotely funny,” Eddie grumbled. 

The front door opened, nearly giving Richie a heart attack. Mike walked in and closed the door. “Hey.”

“Where are Bill and Stan?” Eddie asked. 

“They’re on their way, but I wanted to talk to both of you before they did,” Mike said. “Richie, do you want to sit?”

Richie frowned, but still sat next to Eddie on the couch. “What’s going on here, Mikey?”

Mike was silent for a bit before he sighed. “Well, more of the usual. It’s like I told you, Rich. Bill’s been sleepwalking, the nightmares and we think we’re being haunted. It’s nothing serious, at least we think, but then the house on Neibolt happened. We talked about it, but I don’t think it has anything to do with it. That’s why we didn’t tell you. We didn’t want it ruining the few good days we have together before filming starts monopolizing our time.”

“Wait, what do you mean? What’s been happening to Bill?” Eddie asked as he sat up straight. “Why didn’t you tell me about this, Richie?”

“Oh, I forgot that I had only told Richie about it. Honestly, we’re probably overreacting about the whole thing,” Mike shrugged, but he looked away from Eddie. Richie frowned. That was weird, right? 

“What if you’re not, though? This isn’t some fucking game, Mi- I mean, it’s serious,” Eddie said and slumped back against the couch. “It’s not fair that I’m the only one here that seems out of the fucking loop.”

Richie thought it was odd that Eddie didn’t tell Mike what happened to him. It would help make Mike take the whole situation seriously, but then again, maybe they were all entitled to their secrets. Plus, part of Richie liked that Eddie trusted him enough to tell him. The other part, the guilty, lying part of him, hated it. He hated it so much. 

“You’re right and I’m sorry, but I promise if anything else happens, you all will know,” Mike said. Before Eddie or Richie could respond, Bill and Stan walked in through the front door. “But for now? Everything is fine.”

Bill walked past Mike and stood next to the free seat, which he left for Stan. “Yeah, everything is fine.”

Something was definitely up there. 

“I’m sorry if you felt like we were keeping things from you. That’s not what we intended. It really just slipped our minds to tell you,” Stan said. 

“And like I said before, we didn’t think it had anything to do with what had been happening. Just a really messed up coincidence,” Mike added. 

Stan nodded, “That’s true.”

Eddie scrunched up his nose, “We should have been told.”

“Right, well next time just let us know,” Richie said and got up. Something was fucking going on here and he wasn’t going to stick around for anymore of this awful conversation. “I’m exhausted, so I’m going to take a nap before dinner. We kind of forgot the spaghetti so maybe we can just order pizza?”

“Yeah, sound good, Rich,” Mike said.

Richie didn’t wait around. He went up the stairs and to his room. Fuck today and fuck Derry fucking Maine.


	3. THREE

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Join Richie Tozier at @Ghastlytrvl on twitter for a good time!

Richie stared at the empty, well not entirely empty, lot where the Well house used to be. He had so many questions, but none of them would be answered apparently. Not that he thought the house would have been able to answer any of the questions he had. It was just a building, after all.

It felt pretty pointless having come all this way in the middle of the night, too. He had to wait until everyone had fallen asleep to sneak out, which felt fucking weird. He hadn’t had to sneak out to do anything since he was like sixteen. 

Richie sighed and looked around. Derry was really fucking odd at night. It was such a beautiful place, aesthetically speaking, and he could see the appeal from people who had never stepped foot in this awful town. Richie knew better, though. 

Growing up in Derry, even before they accidentally summoned a demon, was rough. It was the typical small town that was filled with everyone’s homophobic relatives that could take one look at you and somehow know every “bad” thing you’ve done. A very real version of the demon that they all encountered, except instead of taunting you and sending cryptic ass messages, they just kicked your ass until you wished you were dead. 

Richie hated thinking about the slurs and the bruises he grew up collecting like stamps. 

He took one last look at the taped off, gated lot where the Well house once stood. Richie’s thoughts drifted from his general childhood to the psychological pain he and his friends had experienced at the house so many years back. Memories he would have forgotten in a heartbeat if it hadn’t been for the fact that he knew it was all going to happen again. 

Even after all this time, Richie kept the fucking polaroid in his wallet. He didn’t know if it was going to come in handy or if he kept it as a reminder of some sort, but it was there. Worn from the many times he pulled the photo out to see if the message was still there. 

It was ridiculous, now that Richie was in Derry and waiting for the rest of his friends to arrive, that he thought anything different would have happened. Richie had hoped that he could have handled it alone, and even now, a small part of him was hoping that coming to the ruins of the house would provide some closure to the whole mess. 

Yet, nothing had happened. And nothing would happen. The house was gone, whatever was after them was still around, and everyone would continue to be too scared to tell each other what was really happening. Not that Richie could fault the others. 

Bill, Mike, and Stan were allowed their secrets. It wasn’t helping anyone, but Richie hardly thought that knowing exactly what was happening would help them in any way. Shit, even when all of this shit first started, Richie let them keep their secrets. He had his own. Eddie had his. They didn’t really talk about it after they walked away. 

Maybe they did. He didn’t know what anyone said behind his back. Richie always went out of his way to change the subject if he felt that it was going to circle back to that day. 

Guilt was funny that way. 

Richie pulled his wallet out of his coat pocket and opened it up. He was about to pull the photo from the little compartment he kept it in when he realized it was gone. 

His heart began to race as he looked on the ground and in his pocket. Maybe it fell? Or he left it somewhere? 

_ Or maybe I took back what belonged to me, Trashmouth.  _

“Oh fuck you,” Richie groaned. “Can we not fucking do this?”

_ Do what? Isn’t this exactly what you wanted?  _

“Richie?”

He turned around and frowned. “Eds? What are you doing here?”

“I noticed you left and figured this is where you came. What the fuck, Rich?” Eddie walked up to him. “You should have told me you were coming here.”

“How the fuck did you get here so fast? Did you drive?”

“No, fucknut, I didn’t drive. I rode Mike’s bike, which fucking sucked.” Eddie looked past him toward the empty lot. “So that’s all that’s left, huh?” 

“Yeah. Good riddance, honestly,” Richie said and put his wallet back in his pocket. “Look, Eds, now that you’re here… I have to tell you something.”

“Yeah? Something to do with this?” Eddie pulled the polaroid out of his pant pocket. At first, Richie thought that Eddie might have been hanging on to his own polaroid - a shared secret, but then he noticed his own stupid smile. 

“How did you get that?” Richie whispered and tried to take it from Eddie’s grasp. 

Eddie pulled back. “Answer the question, Richie.”

“Look, I didn’t want to tell you all about that…” Richie said and shoved his hands in his pocket.

“I can’t believe you’ve known this whole time and didn’t tell any of us. Didn’t we just get mad at Mike, Bill, and Stan for this same shit?” Eddie asked. “This is fucking worse, Richie! You knew since we were kids that it wasn’t over.”

“Eddie-

“No, Richie. You had so much time to tell me what we were walking into, but this is just typical Richie Tozier isn’t it?” Eddie threw the polaroid to the ground. 

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Richie ignored the picture, though he wanted nothing more than to reach down and grab it. 

“We didn’t forget that you started this in the first place! I didn’t want to play the stupid game, but you thought it would be fun! So, of course, we all stupidly followed you and now look! God knows what’s happening to Bill. We’re all probably going to die and you couldn’t even do us the courtesy of telling us that the game wasn’t over.” Eddie ranted. “Do you think Mike, Bill, and Stan would have stayed if they knew? Do you think we would have come back?”

“I didn’t force any of you to play the game. It’s not my fault you gave in to peer pressure, Eds.” Richie said and immediately regretted it. 

“Fuck you, Richie. When have you ever been the type to respect anyone’s boundaries? It was always a fucking guilt trip with you and we all went along with it because we felt bad. We knew that if we didn’t hang out with you, then no one would. And they were the smart ones, apparently, because now look at us!” Eddie laughed. “Trapped in Derry, probably going to die, but hey! At least Richie Tozier will profit! Good for the show, right? Be honest, Richie. Did you not tell us because it’d be good for shock factor? Is there a hidden camera somewhere?”

Richie tried to blink away the tears forming in his eyes. “That’s not fucking fair, Eddie. I didn’t lead you all here to be slaughtered. If I could, I would do this all on my own. I never thought any of this would happen.

“I didn’t mean to guilt you into ever being my friend. If that’s what you think I did, then I’m fucking sorry.”

“Fuck your sorry. They don’t mean anything now.” Eddie rolled his eyes. “I should have known from the beginning when you had me lie for you. You would always be hiding things from us. I don’t know why I expected you to treat me differently.”

Eddie scowled and turned his back toward where he left Mike’s bike in the middle of the road. 

“Eddie, I’m sorry.”

“I don’t think you are. I’ll see you in the morning, Richie.” Eddie said as he walked away. 

Richie stared at him until he was on the bike and then out of sight. He closed his eyes and let the tears roll down his cheek. Well, he supposed that was some fucking sort of closure. 

He turned to the car, but then remembered the polaroid. Richie turned back around and went to pick it up, but it was gone. 

“Okay, fuck this.” He groaned and righted himself. “Whatever fucking game you’re playing, I’m done. Fuck you and that fucking picture.” 

The wind picked up and nearly knocked Richie to the ground. Yeah, he knew when to take a fucking hint. He’d get the fuck out. 

  
  



	4. FOUR

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For a good time, call Richie Tozier or just follow him @ghastlytrvl

They all sat around Stan’s living room, plates filled with pancakes and bacon. Richie had forgotten how good it felt to just be together. He had missed them all and for the first time since coming back to Derry, he felt complete. 

Ben was in the middle of answering one of Stan’s boring ‘how has your life been’ questions, when his phone vibrated under his leg. He put down the plate on his thigh and picked up his phone. He stared at his lockscreen in confusion. There wasn’t a single notification. He was about to put it back down when it vibrated again. 

Richie unlocked the phone and a new text chat opened. He looked wearily around the room, but everyone was still talking and no one had noticed his lack of participation. 

**: Now that all the players have entered**

**: It’s time for the game to begin**

**: Richie, are you willing to lose for the ones that you love?**

Before Richie had a chance to react, six different notifications buzzes and rings could be heard from around the room. Eddie rolled his eyes when he noticed that Richie had his phone out. “You know you could have just said whatever you text the group chat out loud. We’re all here.” 

“Richie, was this you?” Bev asked as she continued to stare down at her phone. 

“Yeah, I g-got one from you, too,” Bill said, uneasy. 

“Did we all get one?” Mike asked. Everyone except for Richie and Eddie nodded. “I don’t think it was Richie.”

“Wait, what the fuck is going on?” Eddie said and put his plate down on the ground. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, unlocked his phone and then stared blankly over Mike’s head. “Oh.”

“I wanted to wait a bit, but maybe we should talk,” Mike said. Stan put his phone down next to his plate and nodded. 

“What’s happening?” Bev asked. She had tears in her eyes, threatening to roll down her cheeks.

“A lot of s-stuff has been happening to me,” Bill said when it was clear Mike couldn’t find the right things to say. “I’ve been having intense n-nightmares and talking in my s-sleep, saying really awful things… stuff I c-can’t remember when I wake up. We hear voices s-sometimes, but I thought it was j-just… you know, s-sometimes you think you hear s-something and really it was a tv in the b-b-background… or you c-convince yourself it was s-something else. I- Apparently, I’ve tried hurting myself and M-Mike at times, too. We d-didn't want to t-tell you b-because we d-didn’t know how you w-w-would react.”

Mike didn’t say anything when Bill downplayed how severe what happened to him was. “We didn’t tell you because we… we needed everyone together. Richie, we think whatever appeared to us that one summer is back. We don’t think the game ended.” 

Bev wiped her tears away with the back of her hands, “I’ve been having nightmares. That’s what mine says. ‘When you lay your head to rest and see the ones you know the best, be assured their fate is true. They will soon be torn from you.’”

Richie laughed weakly, “Wow, that’s a shitty poem.”

“It’s taunting me,” Bev said. Ben took her hand and squeezed softly. “Ben and I exchange really bad poems all the time. Just when we’re sad or happy or really for anything, awful things. I… I’ve been having nightmares where some of you die… Richie, when I messaged you earlier? I had a dream about you.”

“What?”

“And I’ve had one other one before, it’s always the same. We’re all in a hospital room and Richie-” Bev looked up to prevent more tears from slipping down her face. “Richie just died from some injuries, I don't know. We’ve all turned against each other. Richie?”

He stared at her, static running through his body and into his head. “Am I going to die?”

“No, no one is going to die,” Eddie said, apparently out of whatever trance he was in before. 

“Richie, my dream… did you keep the polaroid?” Bev asked.

Richie looked down, “I didn’t mean to.”

“Wait, what? Rich, you have the polaroid?” Eddie asked. “I thought we weren’t going to keep secrets?” 

“The night that it happened, I went home and noticed it in my pocket. I still had it when I came to Derry, but I couldn’t find it last night.” Richie pulled out his wallet and confirmed that it was still gone. “I knew the game wasn’t over since that night.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Eddie asked and moved to stare at Richie. “You’ve known this whole time?”

“I thought that it was trying to scare me and then I figured that if it did come back, it only wanted me or everyone would have gotten their polaroid back!” Richie curled up into himself. “It’s not like I wanted to lure you all here so it could get you. I would much rather have handled it on my own.” 

“My m-message says ‘No m-matter what you think you know about the p-people around you, there will always be s-secrets. The only one you c-can ever really trust is yourself. Which is s-sad, c-considering I d-don’t even t-trust m-myself.’ It’s a line from my b-book that isn’t out, yet,” Bill said. “It’s using our insecurities.”

“Bill’s right,” Mike said. “I… mine says something really personal, something Bill told me earlier this week. I don’t feel comfortable sharing it, but… I… lied. To him. I kept a lot of what was happening to him and to me a secret. It’s using that. My guilt over the whole situation.” 

“‘You can’t do anything to help them, Ben. You are useless. Useless like you were back then.’ It’s-

“From the house?” Bev whispered. 

“Yeah. I always worry about all of you,” Ben shrugged. “Sometimes I feel, though, that I’m not an important part of our group’s dynamic. It’s not anything you all have done, it’s just what I tell myself. I don’t want to make any of you feel bad.”

“I’m still sorry if we’ve ever made you feel like that, Ben,” Stan said. “You’re more than an important part to our dynamic. You’re our friend. It’s lying to you. And if it’s lying to Ben, then it’s lying to us all.”

“What does yours say, Stan?” Eddie asked. 

“That’s not important because it isn’t true,” Stan argued. 

“Mine told me that I’m weak. Used a lot of the same words that that thing told me when we were at the Well house. Oh, and yeah, everything you know about that night is a lie, too,” Eddie rolled his eyes. “I was weak and Richie saved me. He lied to, I don’t fucking know, protect me-

“Eds,” Richie whispered. “Please, don’t.”

“No, let's air out our dirty laundry. Tell all of our secrets. Stop fucking lying to each other!” Eddie gestured around the room. “I’m a coward and it’s going to get us all hurt or killed. Stan?”

“It’s telling me I’m going to wind up alone,” Stan looked away from the group. 

“Anyone else? Richie, you got a text?” Eddie asked. 

“Mine was a question,” Richie passed his phone to Eddie. 

“Richie, why is there a reply?”

“What?” Richie turned to Eddie. “I didn’t reply to it.”

“Don’t fucking lie to me, anymore, Rich. It asked you if you were willing to die for us all and it says yes,” Eddie threw the phone to the ground in front of Richie. “You fucking said yes.”

“I-

“Richie, in my dream that’s what happened,” Bev interrupted. 

“Look, we can change this all,” Stan said. “This is already different than your dreams, Bev. We know about the polaroid and we know that it’s targeting Richie and Bill, specifically. If we can find out why then we can maybe fix this before anyone gets hurt.”

“And how do we do that,” Ben asked. 

“We organize everything we know and we connect the dots. We formulate a plan and then attack the stupid fucker,” Stan smiled.

  
  



	5. FIVE

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> find the rest of the story on twitter @ghastlytrvl

“What happened?” Bev asked as soon as she walked into the room. Stan was sitting on the bed, Eddie next to him, holding his hand.

“I don’t really know. I have gaps in my memory. More like spots of things that I can actually remember… I remember being with you all and then I’m in the middle of the street and then I’m in Mike and Bill’s restroom.” Stan looked at Eddie. “You came, but I don’t know when. You were in the middle of telling me what you saw…”

“Right.” Eddie frowned and looked up at the other Losers. “It was his reflection-

“His reflection?” Bill asked. 

“It was him, but it also wasn’t. He was staring at it and it was talking, but Stan wasn’t.” Eddie turned back to look at Stan. “You were just frozen there, it didn’t even look like you were breathing. I don’t remember exactly what it said, but it was fucked up, man.” 

“Why are we fooling ourselves into thinking we can fix this?” 

“Excuse me?” Bev turned to where Richie was standing in front of the restroom. 

“What the fuck, Richie?” Eddie glared at him. 

“What? Let’s be honest with ourselves! Stan was the most confident of us all that we could do this and he was the first one drawn away from us. It was that easy!” He walked away from the bathroom door and towards the room’s entrance, though Mike was blocking his way out. 

“Richie, go sit down,” Bev pointed to the bed. Richie reluctantly followed her order. 

“Stan wasn’t the first one to experience something, though. At least not since we’ve all been together. We’ve already gone over this, right? Bev’s dreams, the text messages, probably more considering our track record,” Eddie said. 

“Fuck,” Richie said suddenly. 

“What?” Bill asked. 

“It can imitate us.” 

“Fuck,” Eddie whispered. “I forgot about that.” 

“No, I… I didn’t tell you, but I saw Eddie at the house… well, outside the gates where the house used to be. I thought it was him up until I got back to Stan’s and realized that he was still there. He had never left… This thing is good and can trick us. It will trick us.” Richie didn’t look at Eddie. 

“I’m going to ignore the fact that you’re still keeping shit from us because it’s counterproductive to what’s going on right now. At the house, when we were kids… Rich and I saw Bill, Mike, and Stan. The thing imitated the three of you all at once. What’s to stop it from happening again?”

“So, new plan of action, no one is leaving anyone’s sight. We are staying together. Old style Losers sleepover, two of us on look-out at all times. We’re not letting anything else happen to one of us again. Richie?” Bev took control of the conversation easily.

“Yeah?”

“When is your crew getting here?” She asked.

“The day after tomorrow. I don’t think they can come sooner.” 

Bev shrugged. “I figured as much. Does anyone have a camera or camcorder?”

“We have our phones?” Eddie supplied. 

“I think I might have a camcorder. Mom bought it for us when we left for our honeymoon,” Bill said.

“I know where it is, I can go get it,” Mike offered, but Bev shook her head. 

“We’ll all go together,” she said. “We can set up camp in your living room and figure out a schedule on who’s on look-out and when. At least for tonight and tomorrow. We’ll set up the camcorder in case anything happens.” 

“We don’t have to record for the show, Bev.” 

“It’s not for the show. I’m thinking it might be good to have in case something happens to one of us, a point of reference or something like that,” Bev said. “And maybe to make sure none of us leave the room.” 

* * *

“Are we going to talk about it?” Richie asked Eddie the moment they got to the living room. “I know I lied again.” 

“No. I’m tired, Richie. I’m so tired of being upset and you already have your reasons, I’ve heard them. I’m just going to, I don’t know, give you the benefit of the doubt on this one.” 

“Wait, really?”

“Don’t you think the thing wants us to be angry with each other? For us to be alone? I’m not going to play its games. Let’s survive this and then we’ll talk.” Richie turned away from Eddie and stared at their group of friends. “That sound good?”

“Yeah, okay,” Richie said. “I can’t believe we’re having a sleepover.” 

Eddie smiled. “It’s a bit like being back in middle school. I kind of feel like Mrs. Uris is going to come down the stairs and tell us to be quiet.”

“We can always summon the thing and ask it nicely to play pretend with us.” Richie smirked. 

Eddie’s face screwed up. “That’s not even funny, asshole.”

“It’s a little bit funny,” Richie laughed, which caught the attention of their friends. 

“I’m glad to see that you two haven’t changed since the last time we had a sleepover and are still stuck in your own little world, refusing to help the rest of us set up,” Stan said and rolled his eyes. 

“Yeah, but now it’s better,” Richie said. 

“I’m not going to take the bait,” Stan replied and went back to setting up the couches with fitted sheets. 

“I will,” Bev smiled wide. “Why is it better?”

“Because now I’m not thinking about how much I want to kiss Eds,” Richie said. 

“Dick,” Eddie muttered. 

“That too.” 

“I can’t believe we’re still doing this. It’s 2019,” Stan sighed. 

“Thank you, Siri, I know the date. It’s a good thing, anyway. I like the fact that we don’t have to worry about who is hiding what and over trivial shit. You know? We’re all on the same page.” Richie looked at Eddie, who was wearing a small smile. Barely noticeable, but there nonetheless. 

“We should decide on who is keeping watch for the first few hours, well we should decide on the list for tonight,” Bev said, pulling the conversation from Richie and Eddie. 

“Eds and I can do the-

“Sorry, Richie, but I don’t think you and Eddie should do your rounds together,” Ben interrupted. 

“What the fuck? Why?” Eddie asked.

“It’s like Stan said… You two are often in your own little world. It’s not a bad thing, but it’s normal for you two to start talking and get distracted.” Bev said. “How about Eddie and I take the first spot?” 

“Rich, you and I could take the second?” Stan asked. 

“I should be angry, but you’re right. Plus, I like Stan more than all of you.” Richie shrugged and moved to the long couch. He wasn’t sleeping on the floor tonight. 

“Well, fuck you, make out with Stan then,” Eddie rolled his eyes and walked over to Bev. 

“As if Stan would let me, he likes playing hard to get.” Richie sighed dramatically. 

“I don’t play hard to get,” Stan said. “You just never asked.”

“That’s not funny,” Eddie glared at Stan and then at Richie. “I swear to god, Tozier, if you ask Stan to kiss you then I will never kiss you again for the rest of your life.” 

“My whole life?” Richie asked. 

“Your whole fucking life, which might be cut short when I fucking kill you.”

“Shit, sorry Stan, I’m gonna take my chances with Eddie.” Richie turned to Stan and pouted. “No hard feelings?” 

“I will somehow live.”

“So, it’s me and Eddie, then Stan and Richie, then?” Bev asked. 

“Mike and I can do a round?” Bill offered. 

“Okay, then I’ll do another with Ben.” Bev pulled out her phone and began typing.

“Wait, so Eds and I are the only ones being singled out?” Richie asked incredulously.

“Get over it,” Stan said. “You two can do the early morning one if you absolutely need to.” 

“Yeah, fine… We can do that.” Richie leaned back into the couch. It was going to be a long night. 


End file.
